Lawyer Says Euclid Reptiles Dying Off

A lawyer for the Kansas City man housing alligator-like reptiles in his inner city house says the reptiles are slowly dying off.
Attorney Louis Wright says only four of the original 37 reptiles still survive at Mike Jacobs’ house in the 4900 block of Euclid.
Jacobs identified the reptiles in an e-mail to his attorney, Wright:
-Female ‘Trena’, arrived at the house May 14, 1994
-Female ‘Cutie’, arrived at the house October 18,1986
-Male, ‘Sugar’, arrived at the house January 14 1987
-Female ‘Asa’, arrived at the house March 15 1995.
Last week, the city said Jacobs had until the end of May, this coming Sunday, to remove the reptiles because they’re in violation of the city’s dangerous animal ordinance.
Jacobs says he and the city agreed to a deal in 2005 to permit the reptiles to remain until 2020.
Jacob’s late mother, Pat entered into a December 21, 1995 settlement with the city that grandfathered in the presence of the reptiles as long as Pat Jacobs used the home as her primary residence, or until 2020, whichever came first.
Her son says Pat Jacobs died in 2005.
Lawyer Wright says there have never been any incidents, injuries, or violations of the 1995 deal.
The city disputes that. Friday the city claimed the Jacobs had added on to the reptile population, a violation of the deal.
It also claimed the Jacobs violated the settlement by allowing people other than immediate family to view the reptiles.
Last week, Gaylyn Patton told KMBC she remembered touring the facility when she was a young girls after her family moved into the neighborhood 15 years ago.
The existence of the reptiles in the Jacobs house came to light after a utility repairman reported the situation to police.
Next door neighbor, Richard Day, says that utility workers was called to his home for an internet repair job. Day says the worker was never threatened or scared by the animals because he never saw them.
Day the reptiles are still inside because the weather is still too cool for the cold-blooded animals.
Days says his wife just brought up the animals to the worked in casual conversation. Then the worker reported it to police.
Wright says Pat Jacobs got into the activity of collecting caimans as an animal rescue project.
Wright says years ago, people would buy small baby caimans as pets. But as the reptiles started to grow, some of them were abandoned. Jacobs would collect them and bring them to her home-made sanctuary on Euclid.